She changed her clothes and walked out. The man was still in the kitchen making noodles, his back to her.
From Jiang Mian's perspective, the man had broad shoulders and a narrow waist, was tall and long-legged. His suit pants hugged a rounded backside, and his figure was excellent. Jiang Mian stared fixedly.
She embraced him from behind, leaning against Ji Zhixiu's back.
Ji Zhixiu thought she was hungry and soothed her, "Go sit and wait, it'll be ready soon."
"No, I just want to hold you." She was clingy like a kitten.
Ji Zhixiu found it hard to resist Jiang Mian like this.
Seeing that it was almost done, he scooped up the noodles, his slender fingers gripping the edge of the bowl, and walked out with her in one hand.
At the stone slab dining table, Ji Zhixiu handed her chopsticks.
Jiang Mian was indeed hungry, but she ate slowly and elegantly.
Ji Zhixiu's cooking was as good as ever. He knew her too well; he hadn't even added chopped scallions.
She finished every last bit, took a napkin to wipe her mouth, and then leaned back in her chair, like a contented kitten.
Ji Zhixiu put the bowls into the dishwasher and informed her, "Chang Qin and the others have set up a situation at Prince Yan's mansion and want me to go over."
Chang Qin was Ji Zhixiu's childhood friend, and Jiang Mian also knew him.
He was also one of the few who knew about their secret marriage.
Hearing this, Jiang Mian rubbed her little face and whined, "I want to go too."
Normally, Jiang Mian wouldn't actively participate in their men's gatherings; it was boring, and she'd rather spend her time getting a manicure.
However, now that Shen Tingyu was back, Jiang Mian felt it was necessary to understand Chang Qin and their attitudes.
It was quite necessary to win over allies.
Ji Zhixiu's expression was unreadable. Upon hearing she wanted to go, he glanced at the sweater she was wearing. "Go and get dressed."
Jiang Mian slowly sat up and reappeared shortly after.
She had wrapped herself up like a ball.
She wore a goose-yellow down jacket on top and fleece-lined straight-leg pants below. Even so, she still appeared slender.
She slung her small bag over her shoulder. "Let's go."
Prince Yan's Mansion.
Chang Qin was the owner behind Prince Yan's Mansion, and Ji Zhixiu was also a shareholder. This group of friends often chose this place for gatherings.
They walked in familiarly and found their private room.
Ji Zhixiu pushed the door open.
The people in the room looked over at the sound, and silence immediately fell.
Wow, President Ji, who had always been indifferent to women, actually had a woman on his arm?!
Soon, the noise resumed.
"Why did Brother Xiu bring a beautiful woman today?"
"None of us brought family members today."
Chang Qin, lively as a monkey, enthusiastically greeted them, "Sister-in-law Xiu, come and sit quickly." He glared at the others, "This is our sister-in-law, be polite to her."
Ji Zhixiu remained silent, putting his arm around Jiang Mian as he sat down.
Jiang Mian offered a faint smile, her small face gentle and charming: "Hello, everyone."
"Hello, Sister-in-law."
"Hello, Sister-in-law."
"Sister-in-law, how did you get together with Brother Xiu? Is Brother Xiu usually fierce to you?"
These people were all Ji Zhixiu's friends. Their families' interests were intertwined, and they had dealings with each other, so they weren't afraid of Ji Zhixiu and dared to ask these bold questions.
Jiang Mian maintained a smile, not responding, just looking at Ji Zhixiu, appearing like a little bird relying on him.
Ji Zhixiu glanced at everyone, his brow furrowed slightly, with a hint of protectiveness: "She's shy."
The implication was: stop asking, take it out on me if you have a problem.
Who would dare to question him?
Chang Qin was used to it; he knew how much Ji Zhixiu cared about this younger sister-in-law.
Lu Cong returned after going to the restroom.
Upon his return, he caught sight of Jiang Mian in the private room and slouched down next to Chang Qin, asking in a low voice, "Who is this?"
Chang Qin: "Remember this, this is our sister-in-law, Brother Xiu's woman."
A bad premonition suddenly arose in Lu Cong's heart.
Hearing this, he became even more flustered. He said with a mournful face, "It's over, Chang Qin, you have to save me."
Chang Qin picked up a peanut and popped it into his mouth. "What's wrong?"
"I called Shen Tingyu..."
As soon as he said it, Chang Qin almost let out a curse. He cursed, "Are you an idiot, Lu Cong? Shen Tingyu and Brother Xiu are past history, why did you call her?"
"She's back in the country, right? She called me asking if I'd seen Brother Xiu. I figured Brother Xiu was coming for dinner today... so I told her you'd be here too. I sent her the address, and she should be here soon."
As he spoke, Lu Cong felt an urge to cry. "I didn't know Brother Xiu would bring a sister-in-law. For the past few years, he's been alone, I thought he still had feelings for Shen Tingyu..."
Chang Qin knew of Jiang Mian's existence by Ji Zhixiu's side, but Ji Zhixiu didn't seem to want to make this relationship public.
So, apart from a few people, no one knew about it. Lu Cong wasn't one of them; he'd tried to be helpful but ended up causing trouble.
He hurriedly urged Lu Cong to take out his phone: "You text her now and say Brother Xiu isn't coming today and tell her to go back."
"Too late..." Lu Cong stared blankly at the private room door.
Shen Tingyu knocked twice, but the noise in the room was too loud for anyone to hear.
So, she pushed the door open herself.
As soon as she opened the door, she saw the man opposite her.
The man was leaning back in his chair, looking languid, his expression indifferent. Ji Zhixiu was looking down, playing with Jiang Mian's fair, jade-like fingers, as if he couldn't get enough.
He didn't look up at all.
Lu Cong's heart was pounding... Could it be a love triangle? If so, he'd rather just bang his head against the wall, saving himself from being screwed over by Brother Xiu later.
Chang Qin stood up. "Shen Tingyu, why are you here?"
He didn't have a good impression of Shen Tingyu himself, and besides, he felt she didn't hold much importance in Brother Xiu's heart, so there was no need to be polite.
Shen Tingyu wore exquisite makeup, her curly hair cascading over her shoulders. Despite the cold weather, she wore a knit dress.
She stared at Ji Zhixiu for a moment before looking away gracefully. "I came to find Zhixiu."
No one in the private room dared to make a fuss.
Jiang Mian hadn't expected Shen Tingyu to come, nor that she could find her way here.
Who had invited her?
She wrinkled her small nose and looked Shen Tingyu up and down.
She seemed shorter than herself and less well-endowed. Could it be that Ji Zhixiu liked her personality?
Ji Zhixiu remained silent, immersed in his own world, paying no attention to the outside. The private room seemed to be filled with an icy chill.
Silence descended.
Lu Cong looked piteously at Chang Qin, silently asking, what now? This was like a hellish scene.
Chang Qin merely grunted without elaboration.
Seeing Shen Tingyu standing at the door for a long time with no one inviting her to sit, someone tried to ease the tension: "Since you're here, why don't you sit down and we can all eat together?"
Shen Tingyu took the hint. "Thank you, it's been a while since I've seen everyone."
She found a seat opposite Ji Zhixiu.
Her eyes immediately fell on the woman next to Ji Zhixiu.
But she didn't dare to question. She didn't have that right anymore.
Everyone started eating and drinking again.
Jiang Mian glanced at her a few times before looking away.
Ji Zhixiu served her a lot of sweet soup, and she felt an urge to urinate. She leaned close to his ear and whispered, "I'm going to the restroom."
Ji Zhixiu nodded almost imperceptibly. "Go ahead."
The private room was too warm, so Jiang Mian took off her down jacket and placed it in Ji Zhixiu's arms. "Hold this for me."
With one layer removed, she felt lighter.
She headed for the restroom.
When she came out, she saw Shen Tingyu standing at the entrance of the restroom.
She paused for a second, then walked over and turned on the faucet to wash her hands.
Then, she prepared to walk past her and leave. Shen Tingyu called out to her, "Let's talk."
Jiang Mian looked at her with her large, watery eyes, then nodded. "Okay."
"Let's go to the corridor outside."
They walked to the very end of the corridor, where there were usually no people.
They stopped at a distance, maintaining a not-too-close, not-too-far gap.
Shen Tingyu appraised Jiang Mian impassively.
She was indeed beautiful, and her features bore a slight resemblance to her own. If someone didn't know, they might even mistake them for sisters.
Her heart ached involuntarily. Zhixiu must be retaliating for her leaving all those years ago, otherwise, he wouldn't be keeping a woman who looked so much like her by his side.
Shen Tingyu took a deep breath, gathered her courage, and asked, "Are you Zhixiu's girlfriend?"
After asking, she stared intently at Jiang Mian, terrified of hearing the answer she didn't want.
Jiang Mian shook her head.
She breathed a sigh of relief as if a great burden had been lifted. Looking at Jiang Mian again, a hint of disdain entered her eyes: "You're not even his girlfriend?"
He won't even give you a title, Zhixiu, I knew you still had me in your heart.
Jiang Mian nodded.
Not his girlfriend, but his wife.
Shen Tingyu suddenly felt more confident. "I believe you can also see that we bear some resemblance. I suspect Zhixiu is looking for my shadow in you."
Jiang Mian was a little displeased. Zhixiu, she called him so intimately, she didn't like it.
Seeing her expression change, Shen Tingyu thought she had hit a nerve. With a mix of pity and smugness, she said, "Now that I'm back, he doesn't need you anymore. You can leave. Get away from him."
Jiang Mian shook her head.
A touch of regret suddenly appeared in her heart. Shen Tingyu's eyeshadow was really sparkly. She had left in such a hurry today and hadn't even put on makeup.
Alas, she was at a disadvantage against a love rival.
Shen Tingyu hadn't expected her to dare to refuse.
She frowned. "Don't you understand what I'm saying?"
Jiang Mian's fair, clean face was bare of makeup. Today, she was wearing flat snow boots, and now she stood a little shorter than Shen Tingyu, losing some of her presence.
She took a small step back, as if frightened by her.
Shen Tingyu looked at her. "Forget it. I'll give you some money, five million. Leave him, is that enough? You're just with Ji Zhixiu for the money, aren't you?"
Jiang Mian shook her head.
Five million? She could divorce Ji Zhixiu now and split the assets equally, and it would be more than five million, even just the small change.
Shen Tingyu was somewhat exasperated. You could say she was obedient, answering whatever was asked, but you could also say she was disobedient, not doing what was said.
In a fit of anger, she grabbed Jiang Mian's wrist and pleaded, "I'm begging you, please leave him, okay? I can't live without him."
Her tone was urgent, her emotions agitated, and the force of her grip involuntarily increased.
Ji Zhixiu was silently calculating how long the young lady had been gone.
Five minutes. Why wasn't she back yet?